An American Legion post in Los Angeles is doing its part to help get much-needed protective supplies to frontline medical personnel in the fight against COVID-19.
Monterey Park Post 397 has offered use of its facilities to host the L.A. Face Shields group and production of free medical face shields and surgical barriers for nurses and doctors across 48 medical facilities in the greater Los Angeles area, Detroit and New York. The group is collecting donations through its website.
“It seemed like the best option for me to be able to create some face shields when a doctor came to me — an ER doctor — and … he had an elegant design for face shields and I said to myself, I can do that,” L.A. Face Shields founder Rob West told KTLA 5 News. “So, I started having friends, people in the entertainment industry who were out of work freelancers looking to chip in in some way and they all said ‘hell ya’ and jumped right in.”
Post 397 has also partnered with the San Gabriel Valley chapter of Homemade Face Masks of LA, a team of volunteers that makes face masks for healthcare workers.
Food Bank 397 is also being run out of the post and provides necessities to veterans and care packages to first responders.
Check out Monterey Park Post 397 on Facebook and call (626) 692-4918 for any questions about donations or anything else.
Author: Jared Morgan
Jared is the senior editor and web team lead for the Department of California and chair of its Media & Communications Commission. He became a member of the American Legion in 2014 when he joined Palisades Post 283 to find stories about veterans issues for a local newspaper while working as its news editor. He was soon brought in as 283's assistant adjutant and historian to help produce the post's award-winning community newspaper. Since then, Jared has used his media skills to help further the efforts of The American Legion in its advocacy of veterans and their families. Jared has also worked for several years to help revitalize the 100-year-old Santa Monica Post 123, formerly as its adjutant and as a member of its executive board, before transferring back to Post 283.
